Chronic absenteeism showed notable improvement across the region, dropping 1.68 percentage points to 13.45% (141 students), with every building showing progress from last week's levels.

At a Glance

School Attendance Chronic Absent Δ Week Status
REGION 95.6% 141 (13.5%) -1.7 Watch
DCHS 94.6% 42 (19.0%) -2.0 Critical
DELA 94.9% 78 (16.7%) -1.7 Critical
BCPS 96.0% 18 (6.9%) -1.3 Strong
KBC 97.0% 3 (3.0%) -2.3 Strong

Today's Focus: Chronic Absence Recovery

The 1.68-point drop in chronic absence represents 18 fewer students falling below the 90% attendance threshold—a meaningful shift in the right direction. DCHS led the improvement with a 2-point decrease (now at 19%), while KBC achieved the steepest drop at 2.3 points to reach just 3% chronic absence.

Despite this progress, DCHS and DELA remain above the 15% threshold that warrants intensive intervention. DCHS continues to carry the highest chronic absence burden at 42 students, representing nearly 30% of the region's chronically absent population. The Attendance Dashboard provides grade-level breakdowns for targeted outreach.

Worth noting: This improvement occurred during a week with solid teacher compliance averaging 63% region-wide, suggesting the attendance data reflects actual student presence rather than data entry gaps.

Quick Notes

Enrollment: Holding steady at 1,048 students, down 36 from October 1 (-3.3%). Recent changes include Markius Carpenter's withdrawal from DCHS (effective 12/19, entered yesterday) and Joshua Thomas's enrollment at DELA (grade 4, effective 1/23).

Staffing: Eleven staff members out tomorrow, with 6 requests still pending approval. DCHS has the highest absence rate at 19% (6 out of 31 staff). See the Staff Dashboard for coverage details.

Teacher Compliance: Mixed results with BCPS at 96% and DELA at 90%, while KBC dropped to just 2% compliance (2 of 85 expected periods). This renders KBC's reported attendance figures unreliable.

Still Watching

KBC Compliance Crisis: Day 4 below 20% compliance makes attendance data meaningless at that building. With only 2% compliance yesterday, the reported 97% student attendance likely reflects unmarked periods defaulting to present.

This Week's Ask

Tomorrow's Birthday: Mark Bartlett (KBC Teacher) celebrates tomorrow—worth a mention if leadership connects with the building.

Pending Approvals: Six time-off requests await approval, including 4 at DCHS where coverage is already stretched.

— Data Team